No other creature in the wild cooks their food before eating it. No birds, no fish, no reptiles, no invertabrea, no mammals. Except humans. And, no other creature in the wild suffers the debilitating illnesses such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, osteoporosis. Except humans. You were born into this world with everything you need to survive and thrive. You were not born into this world with a stove or microwave attached to your belly. Cooking denatures food. Life-giving and healing nutrients are heat sensitive. On average, the cooking process destroys 50% of the minerals and fiber, 75% of the protein and vitamins and 100% of the hormones, oxygen, phytonutrients and enzymes in food. Cooking also renders food toxic by creating free radicals through a process call glycation. Enzymes are large protein molecules found in all living things - plant and animal. Your body is capable of producing two types of enzymes, metabolic and digestive. In human physiological terms, metabolic enzymes are the spark of life. They are the catalyst for every single chemical reaction in your body - every process, every action, every muscle movement, every sense, every thought, every word and every deed. The more enzymes you have inside of you the more alive you become. Food in its' original, fresh, ripe, raw and unadulterated state contains naturally occurring enzymes which aid in its' own digestion. When a peach falls to the ground the cell walls are broken and a bruise develops at the point of contact. The enzymes are liberated and the peach begins to digest itself. The same process occurs when we chew the peach. This greatly reduces the burden of digestion from your body since it does not have to go through the taxing process of manufacturing enzymes for the digestion of the peach. This is a key point as the body expends a great deal of energy in the digestion of food. When you eat a cooked food meal, 80% of your body's total available energy is expended in the processing of that meal. When you eat a raw food meal the energy expended in processing is reduced to only 20%. The less energy you expend on digestion the more energy you have available for life. Most people go through their entire lives totally unaware of their true potential because their bodies are perpetually under the heavy burden of processing the unnatural foods they are eating. The more food is processed the more enzymes are destroyed and it becomes mostly "dead." Because of their highly perishable nature, heat processing (cooking) destroys 100% of the enzymes in foods rendering it completely inert. This increases shelf life which is very desirable for the commercial food distribution industry but, it is highly undesirable for your body's health and well-being. As a result of cooking and other forms of food processing, enzymes are largely missing from the Standard American Diet (SAD.) Other essential nutrients such as vitamins, minerals and proteins are also destroyed in the processing of food which creates other issues with your health. Your body has the capability of producing digestive enzymes to make up for the lack of enzymes in cooked and otherwise processed foods. The problem is that you were born with a finite ability to manufacture enzymes. When you deplete your enzyme manufacturing capability, you die. The less of a burden you put on your body to produce digestive enzymes, the more metabolic enzymes will be available throughout your lifespan. This greatly improves your energy, vitality, health and longevity. This is part of the magic and life force energy in raw foods. Raw foods are alive and we are alive. Since life begets life, the more raw foods you eat the more alive you become! It is not uncommon to see people who eat mostly raw foods to look 15 years younger than their true chronological age and have soaring energy levels. Raw foods are truly anti-aging! Living foods create living bodies. Dead foods create sick, decaying and dead bodies.
About the Author: Kendell Reichhart is a Holistic Health Counselor and Nutritional Consultant. She was associated with the Cometa Wellness Center in Lutherville, MD before opening her own practice in Towson October 1st, 2009. Kendell completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Maryland, where she received a B.S. in Biology and Psychology. She received her nutritional education in the Professional Training Program of the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. Through this program, Kendell received certification and accreditation from The Center for Educational Outreach and Innovation of the Teachers College at Columbia University, and from the American Association of Drugless Practitioners. She has continued her education by completing a workshop in Raw Foods and Healing Herbs at the Omega Institute for Holistic Studies. In addition to her professional training and education, Kendell has conducted presentations on a wide array of topics, including all of those listed below. -Classes on raw foods and raw cooking -Presentations on Living food Nutrition -Workshops on sugar addiction -Presentations for garden clubs on organic and local produce vs. conventional produce -Presentations for different health concerns such as Immunity, weight loss and even more specific dis-eases. -Superfood Parties -Lectures at Festivals such as Karma Fest on Superfoods and Raw Foods Brian Hetrich is a Naturopath, a certified nutritional counselor, author, raw food chef and lecturer specializing in corrective nutrition, lifestyle evaluation and natural health education. Brian believes in the curative power of nature and emphasizes the harmonious integration of body, mind and spirit. Brian works with clients to restore and support the body's optimum health by using a variety of modalities including diet, herbs, exercise, rest, positive thinking and other lifestyle factors. Brian has been 100% raw since 2007. In addition to dramatic weight loss (100 pounds) Brian has experienced a total transformation on raw foods including increased energy, better sleep, mental clarity, connectedness, better mood, sensitivity, skin, eyes, smell, hearing, taste, touch, etc.